Who am I?
by EMY3K
Summary: REDONE! This is the story of Jade, a nine year old towheaded genius, who has been an experiment all her life. After she escapes, she befriends the Gargoyles and friends and makes startling discoreries.
1. The Escaped Prisoner With No Name

Chapter One The Escaped Prisoner With No Name

The girl was already getting cramps in her sides. She had been running for ages and she didn't know how much longer she could keep it up. She glanced behind her. Several men dressed in all black pursued her. She supposed she should have been flattered. Usually they only sent one or two men after her.

"Aren't I the popular one?" the child muttered sarcastically.

She was around nine years old. She couldn't remember which day she had been born. Heck, where she usually lived, she couldn't tell day from night. Back at the laboratory where she had lived her entire life, she tried to escape constantly. Sometimes when she wasn't, she crawled around in the ventilation system.

The grown-ups who controlled her thought that they were so high and mighty. The adults had raised her to be humble around her "superiors". One of the tactics they used was taking away whatever humanity she possessed. They always called her "it" or "the Girl". She never really had a real name. They treated her like she was something below them whose only purpose was to do whatever they ordered her.

The girl darted into one of the nearby buildings and fled up into the elevator. She pressed the button for the roof. As the elevator slowly made its way up, the girl paced around the small elevator. She had never been in an elevator by herself before. One of the adults had always been with her. She was always escorted wherever she went.

The girl sighed. The elevator doors opened. She ran to the edge of the roof, with her pursuers right behind her. She whirled around to face them.

"Give up, Girl," one on the men snarled.

The hunted didn't need superpowers to recognize the voice. It was Charlie, one of His Sweepers. The Sweepers "swept" away the mess, and the Cleaners got rid of the evidence.

"I'm never going back," the girl snarled back.

"You have no other option," Charlie sneered. "If you come back quietly, the punishment won't be as harsh."

"And why should I trust you?" the girl glared. "You, who would tattle if it meant gaining more power."

Charlie took a step forward. "You will do as you're told."

"Get away from me," the girl screamed. "I won't go back. You can't make me."

"We created you, Girl," Charlie smiled nastily. "Your will is our will. You're only our tool."

She felt her anger rise. "I am not your slave, Charlie. I'm a human being."

"You're below human," Charlie told her coldly. "You wouldn't even exist if it wasn't for your betters. You're dirt. No, you're lower than dirt. Now, come here. NOW!"

"Get away," she ordered. "I'll jump. I swear I will."

"Go ahead," Charlie shrugged. "All we need is a sample of your DNA to make a clone. Maybe it will be less . . . resilient than you."

"It'll still be a setback," the girl pointed out. "You could say good-bye to that promotion you wanted."

"I'm patient," Charlie shrugged back. "If it means I'd be rid of you, even for a short while, I'd call it a blessing."

The girl sighed. Putting her hands in the air, she slowly walked toward her captors. Just as Charlie reached to grab her, she darted away and jumped off the building.

Brooklyn was just about to go back home from patrol when he had noticed the human child fleeing from the older humans pursuing her. She had ran onto the roof and fled to the edge. The conversation between the girl and one of the men chasing her had halted for a few minutes. Then the girl walked toward her pursuers, defeat written all over her face.

Brooklyn and his fellow clan member, Broadway, rushed in to save the girl, but apparently she had plans of her own. Just as soon as one of the men was about to grab her she fled back to the edge off the building. Then she leapt off.

To the gargoyles' surprise, she didn't fall off the building. With amazing agility, she leapt onto the next building.

"Whoa," Broadway muttered.

The human who was talking to the child pulled out a gun and shot it towards her. A rope shot out and wrapped itself around the girl. Then the girl was yanked forewords.

"We've got to save her," Brooklyn ordered. "Whatever she is."

Both Gargoyles flew at the humans. The humans tried to fight back, but the Gargoyles had them beat within twenty minutes. All that was left was the human who had shot the gun at the child. He had just finished pulling up the child, who appeared to be unconscious. He held the girl up like a shield.

"Stay away from me," he screamed.

"Give us the girl," Brooklyn demanded.

"No!" the man yelled back. "She belongs to me. You can't have her!"

With that, he began to step backwards.

"Stop!" Broadway yelled, but it was too late.

With the child in tow, the man fell off the building. He managed to grab on to the ledge, but dropped the girl in the process. Brooklyn grabbed the child before she fell to her death while Broadway pulled the man up into the air. Brooklyn gently put the girl down and went to find something to tie the human man up with. He tore apart a garbage can and wrapped it up around him.

With the battle over, the two Gargoyles brought the girl to the castle.

The girl heard sounds before she regained her sight.

"Do you think she'll wake up soon?" a voice asked.

"I hope so," said a second voice.

She groaned and tried to open her eyes, but the light was too bright for her. She quickly shut them again.

"I think she's coming to," a third voice said.

The girl slowly opened her eyes again. The sight she saw was not what she had expected. Seven . . . somethings were kneeling around her. One of them slightly resembled a dog, except it was blue with giant ears. The one that looked like a dog licked her face; the girl just stared in wonder. What were they? Were they more of the lab's experiments? Were they sent to capture her?

"Hello," the smallest of the . . . whatever they were smiled. The girl recognized him as the owner of the first voice she had heard. "How are you feeling?"

"What are you?" the girl blurted out. "Where am I? How long have I been out?"

The oldest looking something chuckled. He had a scar under one eye.

"Aye, we haven't introduced ourselves, have we?" he smiled. "We're Gargoyles."

The girl frowned. "You mean like those statues on top of castles?"

"Precisely," another gargoyle nodded. This one was blue and very tall. He was watching her with mild mistrust.

"Do you," the girl hesitated. "Um, work for them?"

"Them?" the little gargoyle asked in confusion. "Who's 'them'?"

"I think she means the men who were chasing her," the red gargoyle told the smaller one before turning back to the girl. "No, we don't. Who were those men chasing you?"

The girl hesitated.

"You can trust us," the only female gargoyle told her. "I'm Angela. What's your name?"

The girl still hesitated.

"We aren't going to hurt you," the red gargoyle told her gently.

"It's nothing personal," the girl replied apologetically. "It's just that whenever people try to help me, bad things happen."

"What kind of bad things, lass?" asked the oldest Gargoyle curiously.

"Anyone who tried to help me in the past is either dead or comatose," the girl replied sadly.

"What's comatose?" asked the gargoyle who hadn't spoken yet.

"That's when you're asleep and who won't wake up," the big blue one explained.

"Oh."

"Don't worry about us, lass," the oldest one smiled. "We've defeated much worse than humans. I'm Hudson. The red one is Brooklyn. Next to him is Broadway. You've met Angela. The smallest one is Lexington and that's Goliath, our leader. The energetic one who first said hello is Bronx." Hudson scratched behind the canine-esque gargoyle's ears. "We want to help you. We consider it our job to help those in need. What's your name?"

"I don't have a name," the girl said sheepishly. "They never gave me one."

"What?" Angela asked in confusion.

"I've lived at the laboratory since I was little," the girl could sense now that she could trust them. "I don't remember life before I went to live there. The doctor in charge didn't want to give me a name because they wanted to make sure everyone knew that I was just the experiment and not a real person."

The Gargoyles stared back at her, horror written all over their faces.

"Of course you're a real person," Angela said indignantly.

"Am I?" The girl asked sadly. "Sometimes I wonder. You see, I'm different from most people."

"How do you mean?" Lexington asked.

"I have telekinesis and telepathy," the girl said matter-of-factly. "I can astrally project myself and heal quickly. I'm also very smart for my age. It didn't take me long to realize that I was the only person who could do those things."

"It just means you're gifted," Lexington said. "Most likely, you have fey in your heritage."

"What does 'fey' mean?" the girl asked in confusion.

"The fey are a race of beings," Angela explained. "They have magic powers and tend to like making mischief. Their king and queen live on an island called Avalon."

"Avalon?" The girl asked in excited disbelief. "Avalon as in King Arthur and Merlin and the Lady of the Lake?"

"You've heard of it?" Brooklyn asked, surprised.

"When the scientists didn't need me, I'd sneak out of my cell and explore through the ventilation system," the girl explained. "Some of the scientists brought books to read in their spare time. I'd sneak into their offices and borrow them. One time, I found a book called _The Mists of Avalon_. I liked that one. I read it five times before I returned it."

"You like to read?" Hudson asked softly.

"Oh, yes," the girl replied. "I love to read."

"What do you like to read?" Hudson asked.

"Anything I can get my hands on," the girl replied with a dreamy look on her face. "Mostly I like fantasy, but lately I've been reading William Shakespeare. _A Midsummer Night's Dream_ is my favorite, I think."

"Remember the magical characters like Puck, Oberon, and Titania?" Angela asked. "Well, those are fey."

"How old are you, lass?" Hudson changed the subject.

"Nine," the girl didn't particularly feel like explaining that she wasn't even sure of her own age.

In the midst of the "excitement", the girl hadn't taken much time to observe her surroundings. She noticed that she was in bedroom. She had never really been in a bedroom before, but one of the scientists had brought a book with pictures of fancy furniture for what was referred to as a bedroom. This bedroom was painted white with matching wooden dressers and bed. The girl had been placed on the bed sometime during when she was unconscious.

"Where am I?" the girl asked, sitting up and rubbing the back of her head.

"Castle Eyrie," Lexington explained. "We live here with some . . . friends of ours."

"I'm in a real live castle?" the girl's eyes lit up excitedly.

"Yes," Brooklyn chuckled. "Although I don't think that castles classify as living things."

The girl grinned. "So when am I going to meet your friends?"

"Sorry I'm late, guys, traffic was terrible," a tanned raven-haired lady said quietly as she entered.

The girl stared at the woman.

"You're awake," the woman smiled gently. The girl noticed that she was carrying a small cardboard box that had the words "Dunkin' Donuts" on them.

"This is one of our friends, Elisa Maza," Goliath explained when the girl looked at him in askance.

"Do you live here, Ms. Maza?" the girl asked.

"No," the human laughed. "Call me Elisa. What's your name?"

"Um," the girl wasn't entirely sure how to respond.

"She doesn't have one," Broadway said quietly.

The girl refused to avert her gaze, even when Goliath explained about the lab.

"I thought you would be hungry," Elisa smiled with a look of pity in her eyes.

No one had ever looked at the child with anything except disdain. She decided she didn't like this look Elisa was giving her but decided not to say anything.

"How long have I been out?" she asked instead.

"About a day," Elisa replied. "You woke up a few minutes after dawn. You hit your head pretty hard. So hard, in fact that you went right back to sleep the headache off."

"Do I have a concussion?" the girl asked.

"You did," Elisa sounded slightly puzzled. "But the doctor said that you'll be as good as new by tomorrow."

"I heal quickly." The girl's eyes widened. "Wait a minute, you sent me to a hospital? You can't. They'll find me. They -"

"Easy, lass," Hudson chuckled gently. "We didn't take you to the hospital. Our friend has his own live-in doctor."

Jade smiled in relief.

"Are you hungry?" Elisa handed her the box. "I brought you a snack. Do you like donuts?"

The girl took out a round, brown "donut". It had a hole in the middle.

"Is it tasty?" the girl asked.

"You've never had a donut?" Broadway asked in shock.

The girl looked away. "No, sir."

"Try it," Angela encouraged.

The young human took a small bite. It tasted sweet.

"This is delicious," the girl managed to say as she stuffed donut after donut into her mouth.

"Whoa, easy," Broadway gently grabbed her wrists. "You'll give yourself a stomach-ache that way."

The girl ate a little more slowly.

"When was the last time you ate, lass?" Hudson asked curiously.

"My last meal, if you can call it that, was at the lab," the girl replied. "I escaped about two weeks ago and I spent most of my energy escaping. It's a long way from the Delaware, you know."

"You haven't eaten in two weeks?" Brooklyn asked in disbelief.

"You walked all the way from Delaware?" Elisa asked the same time.

"I got food from the Dumpster," the girl replied. "Occasionally, Id steal food from carts. Just to eat. You know, to keep from starving. And no, I didn't walk the entire way. I took a bus half the way."

"Where did you get the money?" Elisa asked, already fearing the answer.

"Someone sent it to me anonymously," the girl frowned. "I'm not sure who. I found a bunch of money in the coat pocket three days after I escaped. The weather's been warm lately, so I haven't really used the coat."

She pulled out the envelope and handed it Goliath. She already knew what was written on it.

_ Jade -_

_ If you don't want to be forgotten_

_ As soon as you are dead and rotten'_

_ Either write things worth the reading_

_ Or do things worth the writing._

"It's a quote by Benjamin Franklin," the girl explained reflectively. "I only told one person how much I loved that quote, but he died five years ago."

"Whoever sent you this called you Jade," Lexington mused.

"I met him when I was little," the girl smiled fondly. "When I told him that I didn't have a name, he insisted on giving me one. He said my eyes reminded him of the jewel. I called him my protector because he always looked out for me."

"Well, that's it then," Lexington grinned. "We'll call you Jade."

"Okay," the girl now called Jade smiled shyly.

"Well, Jade," Hudson smiled. "Are you feeling up to meeting our friends?"

Jade nodded and followed her new friends into the unknown.

A/N All related characters belong to . . . Toon Disney, I guess? I own Jade and Charlie.


	2. Introductions are In Order

Chapter Two Introductions are in Order

The Gargoyles and Elisa gave a tour of the castle to Jade. When they were finished, they toured the mansion. Jade had never been anywhere so fancy. The adults led her into a room where three adults were standing in a baby's room. The red-haired woman held a little baby with the same color hair. The brown-haired man had an arm around the woman.

"I see our young guest is up," said the remaining person.

He was a tall man with blonde hair and glasses. Jade was getting a weird feeling off this guy. Not a feeling that he had bad intentions or like she was in love. A repressed sense of michieviousness and an even stronger gentleness radiated off him like a hot piece of coal. The weird sensation was a feeling that she had been waiting her whole life to meet someone like him. Even though his face was devoid of any emotion, Jade could have sworn that he was staring at her funny, too.

"Hi," Jade grinned shyly. "I'm Jade."

_Apparantly. _ She added silently.

"This little guy is my son, Alex," the woman smiled. "That's our assistant, Owen Burnett. I'm called Fox Xantatos and this is my husband-"

"David," Jade finished quietly.

Everyone in the room looked taken aback.

'How did you know my name?" the man named David Xanatos asked, leaning down to her height.

FLASH!

She was five again. It was a few weeks after her guardian angel had been killed. She was crawling around in the ventilation system. She stopped when she recognized to familiar people. It was Charlie and Him. Dr. Severius only came to visit once a year, even though he was the head boss of the project that was in the form of a little girl. When he did come to visit, it never ended very happily for the girl.

Dr. Severius and working with chemicals and Charlie was reporting news about what was going on.

"Project Prometheus is going along nicely," Charlie was saying. "Although the Girl is starting to rebel against its betters, no doubt due the influence of a certain Pretender."

Up above the room, she sighed. That was all they ever called her. By the name of the project, the Girl, or It.

"Well, we'll have to beat the resilience out of It, won't we?" Dr. Sevarius chuckled.

For the first time that she could remember, Charlie looked uneasy. "Sir, what you happen if, you know, he found out about It."

"Why do you think I took Project Prometheus to Delaware?" Dr. Severius shrugged. "This way, I have the freedom to do what I want, and David Xanatos will be none the wiser."

She frowned. David Xanatos? Who was he? She leaned closer.

"I wasn't referring to Xanatos," Charlie said quietly.

"I'm sure if our unwitting donor found out, there would be hell to pay," Dr. Sevarius shrugged. "All the more reason for him not to find out."

She frowned in confusion. Unwitting donor?

FLASH!

"Jade?" Elisa was asking. "Are you alright?"

Jade blinked. She was back in the mansion. The Gargoyles and humans were staring at her with a mixture of worry and confusion.

"I'm fine," Jade blushed. "Sorry if I worried you."

"How did you know my name?" David repeated gently.

Jade looked up at Goliath in askance. The giant Gargoyles seemed to sense her hesitance because he nodded encouragingly. Jade told the group of her memory.

By the time she had finished, everyone in her room had a mixture of anger and horror on their faces. David Xanatos was completely beside himself.

"Sevarius betrayed me?" He raged. "I paid him handsomely every time. I trusted him!"

Jade stared at the millionaire coldly. "You worked with Dr. Servarius?" she asked, a little outraged herself. "All that man ever did was use people. He even paid people to gain my trust and then betray me. Did you use people too? Well?"

David stared back, filled with guilt and terror. He made a mental note never to make this girl mad. A powerful aura seemed to radiate off her and it got stronger when she was angry.

"Yes," he replied softly. "I did."

"Now you know what it feels like," Jade glared at him. "Did you ever consider how those people you manipulated felt. Do you have any idea how hard it is to trust people after something like that happens?"

David glanced briefly at Elisa and the Gargoyles. He had used them. Even after all the times he had tried to make amends, they didn't completely trust him. Maybe they hadn't forgiven him because he didn't deserve it.

"Jade," Goliath told the young girl gently. "It is true that David Xanatos was once our enemy, but he has changed since then. He's made penance many times since."

Xanatos looked at Goliath with surprise.

"What made you change?" Jade asked curiously. 

Everyone in the room felt some of the anger drain from the child.

"Not what." Xanatos corrected softly. "Who. When my son was born, just being around him changed my view on the world."

Jade gazed at him, now devoid of any anger. She ran over and hugged him. After a minute, she stepped back.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Xanatos," the girl said apologetically. "I should have given you a chance to explain. It's just that I lose my temper when I hear of people being manipulated."

"No harm done, Jade," Xanatos smiled. "And please call Fox and me by our first names." 

"Okay, David," Jade grinned cheerfully.

"Who was this 'unwitting donor' you spoke of?" Mr. Burnett asked.

"I don't know, Mr. Burnett," Jade shrugged. "That was all I ever heard of that topic."

"Owen, please," the towheaded man smiled at her before turning to his employer. "May I suggest getting the answer straight from the horse's mouth?"

"What horse?" Jade asked, confused. "How do you get an answer from a horse's mouth?"

"It's an expression," Lexington explained. "It means that we'll get the answer from the source itself. In this case, Sevarius."

Jade's eyes widened as she paled. "Dr. Sevarius is here?"

"He lives in Manhattan," Angela assured her. "He doesn't live in this mansion."

Apparently, it didn't do the trick. "You can't go see him," Jade babbled, growing more agitated by the moment. "He'll know I'm here. He'll get me and take me back. If he gets me, he'll hurt me again. I don't wanna go back. You can't go. Please don't go."

Then Jade did something she hadn't done for years. She started crying uncontrollably. 

The adults stared at her, at a complete loss at what to do. David, remembering something his mother had done, picked the child up and hugged her.

"Shh, it's going to be alright," he assured her. "We won't let him hurt you."

As David kept talking, Jade slowly wrapped her arms against the adult and leaned against David's chest. 

"You promise?" Jade asked weakly, calming down a little.

"Of course," David replied without hesitation. "We all do."

"But you barely know me," Jade looked up, perplexed.

"There's a lot of evils in this world that I can't, under any circumstances, tolerate," David explained. "Hurting children is at the top of list. So, as long as you need it, you're under our protection."

Jade smirked. "You have an actual list?"

David laughed as he ruffled her blonde hair. "Smart Alec."

Jade giggled and wiped her tears away.

"Jade," David said gently. "We have to interrogate Sevarius and doing so will result in him knowing that you're here, but I promise to do everything in my power to make sure he never touches you again. Okay?"

Jade nodded. "He'd find out that I was in Manhattan somehow anyway. Better sooner than later, I suppose." Jade looked up at David. "But not right away. Wait a few days. Please? For the first time in my life, I don't have to run. I just wanna be safe for a while. Please."

The adults looked at each other.

"Three days," Goliath said finally.

Jade hugged him. "Thank you. Thank you."

A day passed by. Jade was enjoying her new freedom. She relished in the fact that she could make her own choices. She had also discovered the pleasures of chocolate chip pancakes, ham and cheese sandwiches, and McDonald's.

Owen and the Xanatos family couldn't help but stare at the child as she ate. She didn't eat as fast as she did the day before, but she was still eating fast. And she was currently on her third helping.

"You shouldn't eat so fast. Jade," David told her as she practically inhaled her clam chowder. "And chew your food."

Jade looked up and raised an eyebrow. "Hello? Chew soup?"

"It's chowder," Owen corrected. "There are portions that need to be chewed. Unless, of course, you wish to choke on your own food."

"Nit-pick," Jade rolled her eyes, but ate more slowly.

"Why are you in such a rush to finish anyway?" Fox asked.

"I want to see the Gargoyles wake up," Jade replied, finishing her clam chowder. "Elisa says they actually break through stone."

"It's very fascinating," David grinned. "More soup, Jade?"

"No thank you," Jade said politely. Then she gave a grin that was startlingly identical to the Puck's. "On to the main course!"

"In a minute," David said seriously. "We need to talk to you. We've talked to the Gargoyles about it last night before they turned into stone and we're all surprised we didn't see it before."

"See what before?" Jade asked curiously.

"We found a way to make sure Sevarius doesn't know you're here when we confront him," Fox replied. "We're going to use sorcery to temporarily alter your appearance."

Jade's spoon dropped with a loud clatter.

"You can do that?" she asked softly.

"Owen can," David grinned. "He has many hidden talents."

"You can do magic?" Jade grinned, looking at Owen with newfound respect. Suddenly, her expression turned serious. "What would I look like?"

"Anything you want," David smiled.

"Could I be average height with shoulder-length dark red hair?" Jade asked. "Can I have a lighter skin tone, but keep my eyes the way they are?"

"If that's how you want it," Owen frowned. "Where did you come up with that specific image?"

Jade frowned as well. "I . . . I don't know," she admitted. "It just . . . popped into my head."

"So, you'll go along with the plan," David asked.

Jade nodded slowly. "Okay, but wait until after the Gargoyles wake up." She pushed her plate back. "I think I just lost my appetite."

Owen, David and Fox burst out laughing.

David Xanatos watched his new ward as she watched the sunset.

"So many colors," Jade marveled. "I had seen pictures of the sunset back at the lab. A friend of mine showed me how to access the pictures from the Internet. They were beautiful, but not as breath-taking as the real thing."

"How very true," Fox smiled down at her.

The humans stood there silently, marveling at the simple beauty of the setting sun. It was broken when the Gargoyles awoke. With an almighty roar, they broke free of their stone encasements.

"Wow," Jade marveled.

"I never get tired of that," Elisa grinned.

"Hello, lass," Hudson smiled at the child. "How did you fare today?"

"Our little guest has an appetite that rivals Broadway's," David grinned.

"I have competition, do I?" Broadway laughed.

"Jade agreed with our idea," David told Goliath.

"Shall we begin?" Owen asked, handing baby Alex to Fox.

"Is this going to hurt?" Jade asked nervously.

"Of course not," Owen smiled. "Shall I change, sir?"

David nodded. A small tornado of light formed around Owen. When it dispensed, Owen was gone and Puck stood in his place.

"Had to make an entrance, didn't you?" David smirked.

"Hey, I happen to be the king of grand entrances," Puck smirked.

"I thought that wsa Oberon's department," ELisa grinned.

Puck laughed. "Okay, so I'm the prince of grand entrances."

"Who are you?" Jade asked, her eyes wide. "And what happened to Owen?"

"We haven't been properly introduced," Puck admitted. "I am Puck -"

"Puck from _A Midsummer's Night Dream_?" Jade interrupted, excited

"One in the same," Oberon's banished Child grinned, bowing slightly.

"Really?" Jade asked eagerly. "Really and truly?"

"Really and truly," Puck chuckled.

"Wait so if you're here, then where's Owen?" Jade frowned.

"Puck is Owen and Owen is Puck," Puck grinned. "We are one in the same."

"So, Owen is a . . . costume?" the child asked slowly.

"That's one way of putting it," Puck rubbed his palms together. "Let's begin," 

"This child we must hide.

Keep whom she is inside.

Change her according to what is said.

Give her shoulder-length hair the shade of red.

Tone her skin a lighter shade.

These attributes will prove to aid.

Make her a bit smaller than average height.

And keep her true self from her enemies' sight."

As Puck chanted, a light began to swirl around the young girl. When it dispensed, the slightly tall towheaded girl was replaced with a redhead who looked startlingly like Little Orphan Annie. She even had the red dress.

"Going for the theater, Puck?" David asked. "You forgot the dog."

"Hey, I couldn't resist, Davy." Puck smirked.

Then he dressed her in blue jeans and a green shirt.

"Brings out her eyes," Puck explained.

"Change back into Owen and watch Jade and Alex," David ordered. "And one more thing. Don't call me 'Davy'. I hate it when you call me that."

"Why did you think I did?" Puck smirked.

"Bronx, stay with Owen and the children," Goliath ordered.

"Hey, I can protect the kids on my own," Puck said defensively.

"Yes, but who will protect the children from you?" Brooklyn smirked.

Puck stuck his tongue out at the red Gargoyle, then changed back into Owen.

"Very well, sir," Owen nodded, taking Alex.

Jade and Bronx followed him inside.

"Shall we go?" Goliath asked, picking up Elisa.

With that, the group took off.


	3. Revelations

Chapter 3 Revelations

Jade stayed with baby Alex while Owen cooked dinner. Alex laughed as the older child held him in the air, spinning around and around. Jade laughed as well. She finally stopped when she got the feeling that Alex was getting dizzy.

"That was fun," said a young voice in her head.

It took her a full minute to realize that the voice belonged to Alex. Because she had lived a very sheltered life, it didn't occur to her that other people couldn't understand what babies said.

"It was, wasn't it?" Jade grinned.

A look of surprise flashed on Alex's face. It was an unusual sight for even Jade to see a baby capable of such expressions.

"You can understand me?" Alex asked.

"Yes," Jade replied, confused. "Is that a bad thing?"

"I don't know," Alex admitted. "No grown-up has ever been able to understand what I say. Except Unca Puck and Unca Owen."

"I'm not a grown-up," Jade said, even more confused. "I'm only ten. I think."

"But you Crossed Over," Alex insisted.

"Crossed over to what?"

"When each person is born, they have universal knowledge and in the case of a mortal, memories of their past lives," Alex explained. "They can communicate with other babies and still understand what grown-ups are saying. When a child is around two years of age, they Cross Over and forget."

"They forget everything?"

"Grown-ups can understand my language in their subconscious," Alex responded. but I've never met anyone who can understand it when they're awake."

"Is it possible that I didn't entirely cross-over?"

"I don't know. Maybe you should ask Uncle Owen. He is right behind you."

Jade whirled around. Owen was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed, looking at her curiously.

"Owen," she gasped. "Hi. Er, how long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough," Owen replied with a raised eyebrow as he stood erect. "Were you talking to young Alexander?"

"Yes," Jade didn't know what to say. "Is that a bad thing?"

"No," Owen responded, coming into the room. "Whatever you are, you seem to be very powerful." 

"So, I am a freak," Jade muttered, glaring at the floor.

"Of course you aren't," Owen assured her. 

Jade didn't look convinced. Owen decided to try another tactic.

"You're not the only that's one different," the assistant told the girl. "There are a group of humans who were mutated with the genes of different animals. They call themselves Mutates."

Jade gave the fey-in-disguise her x-ray look. "David was a part of that, wasn't he?"

As usual, no expression was visible on the personal assistant, but Jade felt him tense up a little.

"Yes," the blonde said finally. "He was."

Jade smiled. "But he's a good guy now."

"Yes, he is," Owen affirmed. "Dinner is ready."

The two walked out of the room and into the hallway together. Jade was still carrying Alex.

"Owen?" Jade asked.

"Yes, Jade?"

"Are you going to tell the others about what I can do with babies?" 

"Only if you want me to, little one."

"I do," Jade decided after thinking it a moment. "I don't like keeping secrets from friends. And I am not little."

Owen chucked. They walked on in silence.

"Owen?" Jade asked in silence.

"Yes, Jade?"

_Ask him!_ One part of Jade's mind said.

"I, um . . .er . . ." Jade faltered.

"Jade?" Owen looked at her quizzically. "What is it?"

_I can't another_ part of Jade's brain replied.

"Can you take Alex?" she asked instead. "My arms are getting tired."

"Of course, Jade," Owen said as he took the baby.

There were a few minutes of silence.

_Jade, you coward, ask him. _The first part of Jade's brain yelled.

"Owen?" Jade asked timidly.

"Yes, Jade?" Owen replied, slightly taken aback by her tone.

"Can you tell me about Avalon and your adventures there as Puck?" Jade asked in a rush.

Alex giggled his child-like laugh. Owen's face broke into a very Puck-esque grin.

David, Elisa and the Gargoyles snuck into Sevarius' bedroom very much like the night the Gargoyles had when the clones needed an antidote. Angela prodded the doctor awake.

"Five more minutes," Anton Sevarius mumbled, turning over.

Goliath decided to take a more direct approach. He grabbed the evil scientist by his pajama top and lifted him up eye level. Sevarius screamed and whipped off his eye covering.

"Oh, it's you, Goliath," he grumbled, peering into the darkness. What he saw caused his eyes to widen with surprise and anger. "Xanatos? What are you doing here? How could you betray me like this?"

David growled and yanked the doctor from Goliath. "I could say the same of you. What's this I hear about an 'unwitting donor'? And what does it have to do me?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Sevarius argued.

"I'm sure if our unwitting donor found out, they'll be hell to pay," David mimicked angrily. "And David Manatees will be none this wiser. Sound familiar, doctor?"

"How did you find out about that?" Sevarius paled visibly. "Who told you?"

"You were never good at keeping a thumb on your experiments," Brooklyn sneered.

'So the Girl told you, did It?" Sevarius' eyes narrowed. "It'll pay dearly for that."

"That girl is not an 'it'!" Angela bellowed, losing her temper. "She is a living, breathing being! How could you treat her like anything else?"

"I created that girl," Sevarius retorted. "She's my creation and do with It what I please."

"She's not an It!" David yelled, throwing the doctor into a wall.

There was a loud thud. Sevarius slid down the wall, groaning. A big crack stood out where he had hit. Goliath picked him up by the pajama shirt and slammed him against the wall.

"Please, don't hurt me," Sevarius quivered in fear. 

"For all the pain you but her through, I should kill you on the spot," Goliath growled. "However, if you tell us the identity of this 'unwitting donor', we'll let you be. For now."

Sevarius told them the donor's identity. Everyone in the room gasped in surprise. More questions followed, which Sevarius answered. David took off after a while, clearly upset. Fox followed to console him.

Sevarius, meanwhile, was glaring up at Goliath with the mixer of fear and hatred. Suddenly, his expression went blank, as if he was about to pass out. That expression was soon replaced by confusion.

"Goliath?" he asked, startled. "What are you doing here? What's going on? Why do I have a giant headache?"

"Maybe we hit him too hard," Lexington stared at the enemy, compelled.

"And that's when I whacked the Banshee on the head like this," Puck said as he hit clobbered the Banshee on the head.

The Banshee was nothing more than a form he had summoned to look and act like the Banshee. She clone was a lot less dangerous of course, and couldn't scream as loud as she was famous for. Puck was in the middle of explaining about the time the Banshee had tried to get revenge for Puck giving her laryngitis.

It helped that he had a captivated audience. Alex and Jade were probably the only ones who truly appreciated him. Davy and Fox were fun, but they needed Owen and tended overlook the Puck. Gargoyles, of course, had no sense of humor whatsoever. Honestly, the whole mirror incident was in jest. Now that they were on the same side, there was no hostility toward Owen, but the Gargoyles and the human Elisa Maza tended to be suspicious and easily annoyed when Owen was dormant.

Alex loved him, whether he was Owen or Puck, but Alex was barely even four months old. Jade was a child in body, but she was unusually wise and mature, yet naive and trusting. How she managed to remain so innocent and carefree throughout all the sadness she had experienced was a puzzle to him. Jade had insisted that as long as he didn't betray her trust or manipulate her in any way, she would love to be buddies with both Owen and Puck. Puck found, to his great surprise, that he wanted (_or rather needed_, he admitted to himself) her trust and wouldn't try to hurt her for the world.

Puck continued his story, despite his inner thoughts.

"Was Oberon and Titainia mad?" Jade asked with wide eyes.

"Lady Titainia was divorced from him at that point," Puck smiled at the memories. "Lord Oberon was amused."

"Why?" Jade asked curiously.

"I was his personal servant," Puck explained, waving away the Banshee. "That's what a puck is."

"Puck isn't your real name," Jade nodded. "It's a title. I remember now. In _A Midsummer's Night Dream_, they had you labeled 'Robin Goodfellow'."

"Yeah," Puck held his head up with his elbows, all the while levitating three feet in the air. "Robin Goodfellow is my name."

Jade thought for a moment. "It suits you."

"How do you figure?" Puck asked curiously.

"Well, from what I've read, robin's come out at spring," Jade explained. "Spring is a time of new beginnings. I haven't known you long, but from the stories you told me, it seems you love being the trendsetter. As for Goodfellow, you're a good person, despite your habit of trouble-making."

"You really think I'm a good person?" the fey asked, surprised

"Of course," Jade smiled warmly. "Otherwise, you wouldn't of come back to defend Alex when Oberon tried to steal him. That makes you one of the kindest and bravest people I've ever met."

"Oh, really," Puck carefully hid the blush and the pleased grin. "What about all the things I helped Davy with in the past. I could helped destroy innocent lives."

"I know," Jade replied softly, an angry expression passing over her face briefly. "You did, but what you did for Alex makes up for most of it. Besides, I don't really care what you did in the past. Well, I do, but I'm not going to hold it against you. The past is behind us. All I really care about is the present and future."

She really meant it. Jade wasn't trying to win brownie points. She honestly was sincere about what she said. Puck glowed with pleasure, speechless.

David, Fox, Elisa, and the Gargoyles came in at that moment. Puck was secretly relieved because for once he didn't have a comedic retort. Or, at least he was relieved until he saw the surprised and sullen look on Davy's face.

"Puck?" Davy asked, surprised. "What are you doing here? I thought I told you to turn into Owen."

"You did," Puck grinned. "But Jade asked to hear about my adventures as Puck, so I gave Jade and little Alex a history lesson."

Puck stared back at them, trying to understand why they were all so serious. Goliath wasn't even glaring at him, as if daring the fey to try anything funny. Instead, everyone was looking at Puck with . . . pity.

"I'll take Alex to bed," Fox said quickly, gathering her son in her arms. "It's past his bedtime."

"Isn't that usually Owen's job?" Puck asked.

"You stay, Puck," Davy told him. "We need to talk to you. Jade, you stay as well."

Puck understood the hidden meaning. Davy wanted to talk to Puck, and not Owen. Whatever he had to say, it somehow involved Jade.

"Why?" Puck asked. Although he hid it well, the seriousness was beginning to scare him. "What's wrong?"

"We found out more information about the 'unwitting donor'," Lexington explained quietly. "Apparently, what the donor, well, donated, was semen."

"Which would mean that this unwitting donor is Jade's father," Broadway added.

"What does this have to do with me?" Puck asked nervously, no longer bothering to mask his emotions.

"Puck," Hudson said gently. "You're the unwitting donor." 


	4. Getting to Know You

Chapter Four Getting To Know You

Puck fell to the floor with a loud thump.

"Are you alright, Puck?" David asked.

"My butt," Puck groaned. Then he looked at the group. "What do you mean, I'm the donor?"

"Puck," David said gently. "Remember that time about eleven years ago when I first started deals with Sevarius? That period where you disappeared. You never really remembered what happened? Remember that incident?"

"Yes," Puck said slowly.

"Well, apparently he stole semen from you," David continued. "He used the semen to impregnate a woman."

"Which woman?" Jade asked curiously.

"We don't know," Elisa said softly. "I don't even think Sevarius remembers anymore."

"If the woman was impregnated almost eleven years ago, then the child concieved would be about ten years old," David went on. "Puck, Jade is your daughter."

"Puck's my father?" Jade gasped.

Puck was speechless.

"We'll give you two some time alone," David said, leaving the room.

The others followed him. Father and daughter looked uneasily each other. Jade was studing the fey carefully.

"You feel resentful," Jade stated.

Puck looked at the half-fey sharply. "Are you reading my thoughs?"

"Of course not," Jade said indignantly. "I told you. I hate manipulation of any kind. A person's thoughts should be private. I . . . I could read minds for a while, but I blocked it out. I can still feel emotions, though. Like radar."

"Ah," Puck said.

"Why are you resentful?" Jade asked curiously. "Don't you like me?"

"Of course I do," Puck softened. "It's just so fast and not expected. Sevarius used me."

"He used both of us," Jade smiled gently. "He used David and the Gargoyles, too, I bet."

Elisa looked worriedly back at the room they had left Puck and Jade in.

"Are they going to be alright?" Elisa asked.

"If I know Puck like I think I do, he'll take it hard," David replied. "He's used to being the trickster. FOr once, the shoe is on the other foot. It'll take him a while to get used to it."

"Meeting a long-lost father can be awkward," Angela added. "I have a feeling it'll take Jade a while as well. I know that Jade's eager to have a family. Besides her freedom, it was probaly all she ever wanted. But it's all happened so fast. It's overwhelming."

"Jade's a tough kid," Booklyn said confidently. "She'll cope."

"The girl's been through so much," Lex argued. "Talented or not, she's still a child. Who knows how many more emotional shocks it will take for her to lose her grip.. I mean, who knows what else she''s been through. Abuse, torture. The possibilities are endless."

"Poor kid," Elisa said sympathetically.

"If Jade wants to tell us about her past, she will," Goliath stated. "We shouldn't force her to."

"Well, duh," Brooklyn grinned.

" The lass is an enigma," Hudson mused. "So trusting, innocent, and seemingly naive, yet she's so wise for her years."

"Puck is going to love her," David grinned.

"How so?" Fox raised an eyebrow.

"The Puck loves puzzles," the billionaire replied. "He'll have fun trying to figure her out."

"Jade's a living being," Goliath growled. "She should be treated as such. Not something to disect and put back together again."

"Oh, he'll love her as a daughter as well," the human assured the looming gargoyle. "I've been watching them together. I've never seen Owen or Puck take to anyone so fast, with the possible exception of Alex."

Jade and Puck, meanwhile, had lost some of the uneasiness.

"Did you ever have anything close to a parent?" Puck asked.

"Once," Jade replied hesitantly. "He died when I wa five and I had met him when I was three, but Jarod always knew how to reassure me."

"Jarod?" Puck asked. "Who is he?"

"My Protector," Jade smiled softly. "I miss him."

Puck gave her a small hug, unsure of what to do.

"So what about you?" Jade asked. "Do you have any other kids? Tell me about my family."

"I don't know that much about my family," Puck replied hesitantly. "I have no definite idea who my own father was. My mother was a mortal who died giving birth to me."

"You're half-human?" Jade asked.

"I used to be," her father explained. "I was on Avalon so long that it made me completely fey."

"Can you take me there someday?" Jade asked hopefully.

"No," Puck replied. "Oberon banished me."

"Why?" Jade asked, startled.

"That's another story for another time," Puck said quickly. "I have had many identities over the centuries and many families. To my knowledge, I have only one child who still survives me."

"Who?"

"I'm sure you've heard of him in stories. Peter Pan is my son."

Jade gaped. "My half-brother is Peter Pan?"

Puck nodded. "I visit him from time to time. I'll bring you next time."

"Cool," Jade grinned. "Who took care of you after your mother died?"

"I was brought to Avalon and raised by Lord Oberon's sister, Princess Amythest."

Jade frowned thoughtfully. "That name seems strangely familiar. Can I meet her sometime?"

"No," Puck grimanced. "She died some time ago. You'd of loved her. She took in and raised a lot of foster children."

"How did she die?" Jade asked gently.

"I don't know all the details, but she gave her life to save a child."

"I'm sorry. You must miss her a lot."

"Thanks. I do."

They were quiet for a few minutes.

Jade looked at her only known parent shyly. "Puck?"

"Yeah, Jade?"

"Well, I know you're my father and all . . ." Jade trailed off then started again. "Someone once told me 'Anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a daddy'. Will you be my daddy, Puck? I'd love to have a family."

Puck gave the first happy smile since, well, a very long time. "I''d love to, my little Jadeling."

Jade ran up and hugged her father tightly, grinning from ear to ear. Puck hugged her back.

"Dad?" Jade asked, refusing to let go of the embrace.

"Yeah, Jadeling?"

"If I'm gonna stay, I want to stay as myself," Jade looked up at her father. "I don't want to hide behind a disguise."

With that, Puck undid the spell. He ruffled her now-blonde hair affectionately. Jade giggled and leapt into her father's arms. This was how the others found them.

"Well, that took a shorter amount of time then I expected," David grinned.

"Hi, Uncle David," Jade said cheerfully.

"You've just been upgraded, Davy," Puck grinned.

"You make me sound like one of my androids," David rolled his eyes.

Puck turned into Owen. "Is there anything you need, sir?"

"I have a question," Elisa spoke up. "When we were getting the scoop from Sevarius, he went blank as Goliath held him. Like he forgot what had happened in the last five minutes."

"THat was part of the spell," Owen explained. "The Puck made sure that if anyone with bad intentions found out anything about Jade, the whole incident where they found out would be be erased. If Sevarius went to a hypnotist, the spell would create an alternate memory that had nothing to do with Jade."

Elisa nodded in understanding.

"Now that Jade is back to how she usuually looks," David asked. "does that mean that all parts of the spell are off?"

"The protection is still on," Owen replied. "Is there anything else?"

David shook his head..

"Then if you have no other need for me, I would like to take the rest of the night off to spend with my daughter."

Jade hugged Puck's alter-ego and gave David a pleading look.

"Of course, Owen," David shrugged. "You stood up against your own father to save my child. THe least I could do was give you the week off to be with yours. You'll still be paid, of course."

"Thank you," Owen looked delighted.

"Of course, you still have to protect my son if he's in danger or teach him magic if the need arises," David told his personal assistant.

"Of course," Owen nodded.

"Tomorrrow you and I are going to spend some aunt-niece quality time together," FOx grinned at the girl. "I'll buy you clothes and books and toys."

"But, ma'am," Owen cut in.

"Consider it ten years worth of birthday presents for Jade," Fox insisted. "If Jade is going to live here with you, then she'll need personal belongings.

Owen smiled apreciatively. Jade gasped.

"I'm gonna live here?" Jade's eyes were huge.

"Of course," Fox took the child from Owen. "Your dad lives here and its only logical that you live with him."

"Will I have my own room?" Jade asked, trying to get down.

"Of course," Fox replied as she set the girl down.

"May I decorate it anyway I want, no matter how outrageous?"

"ANyway you want," Fox agreed. "We'll put you in a guest room until your new room is set up the way you want."

"Okay," Jade wouldn't stop grinning.

"What do you say?" Owen told his daughter sternly.

"Thank you, Aunt Fox," Jade said politely.

"Come on, Daddy," Jade dragged Owen off. "I wanna watch a movie with you."

"This is going to be healthy for all three of them," Lex noted.

"All three?" Broadway blinked.

"Jade has a family," Lex counted off on his fingers. "Owen will no doubt learn how to have fun, and Puck will learn responsibility."

"And a little child shall lead them," Elisa quoted, smirking. "It's going to be wierd to see Owen having fun and a responsible Puck."

Jade couldn't sleep. It wasn't that she was having nightmares or anything. It was just that she had never had such freedom before. Back at the lab, they would lock her in her space (their name for her cell). Of course, she would just travel though the ventilation system, but she didn't do it very often because they drugged her dinner every night to make sure she stayed asleep until the next morning. Her new room . . . they hadn't locked the door. Jade knew that Dad and the other adults wanted her to go to sleep, but she felt too restless.

So she wandered all around the mansion, and eventually into the castle. She eventually found the library and pulled out a random book.

_It's written in Latin._ Jade realized as she opened the book to the first page. _I know Latin._

She read the book quickly, transilating the words in her mind. Then she picked up another book and read it. And another and another. Some were harder than others. Eventually, she fell asleep, buried the the pile of the ooks, with a peaceful smile on her face.

This was how Goliath found her. Careful not to wake her up, he carried her back to her room. Jade started moaning softly on the way. By the time Goliath had placed the child in her bed, she had a troubled expression on her face.

"No," she moaned. "Please. I promise I'll be good. Don't hurt me. Please."

"You rest now, Jade," he told her gently. "It's alright now. Nothing will ever hurt you. Sleep."

Slowly, Jade's expression turned back to serene. Goliath tucked her in and crept out, closing the door behind her.


	5. Of Shopping and News Reports

Chapter 5 Of Shopping and News Reports

To Jade's surprise, she was back in her room when she had left the night before. Frowning, she got up and wandered down to the kitchen. Her father and the Xanatos family were seated in the dining room.

"Good morning, Jade," David smiled, glancing up at her above his newspaper. "How did you sleep?"

"Fine," Jade replied, sitting down herself. "Who moved me back to my room?"

"That would be Goliath," Owen replied. "Would you like an omelet?"

"Yes, please," Jade said politely, wondering what the heck an omelet was.

"Ready to go shopping today, Jade," Fox smirked. "We'll leave after breakfast."

"Okay," Jade grinned happily as she was given her omelet.

True to Fox's word, the two left in a limo. Jade had fun pressing all the buttons.

"You know, Jade," Fox smirked at the child as she continually pressed the button that rolled up the window in between the chaffer and the passengers. "No matter how much you press that button, the window will only go up and down."

Jade smiled apologetically, but still continued to press some of the buttons. If the old adage about curiosity killing the cat was true, then Jade had enough wonder to kill ten cats in one try. Fox finally got Jade to stop pressing the buttons by offering her a coke.

"It tastes weird," Jade noted. "I have this weird sensation in my nose. Everything tastes different than it did back at the lab.

"What did the food taste like there?" Fox asked curiously, thankful that the window was up."It really didn't have a taste," Jade took another sip of her soda. "It was always a soup. It always had the nutrients one needed for a balanced diet, but it never really tasted like anything, but whatever the soup was, it was disgusting. It's all they ever fed me, so I got used to it. Maybe that why it never tastes like anything. You know, because I grew up on it. That's also why I tend to eat soup so fast. I'd always drink it really quickly to get it over with."

Fox had nothing to say to that. No wonder the girl had always been enthusiastic about mealtime. It was the first time she had ever really "tasted" anything".

Eventually, the limo pulled into Macy's. Fox would have had Jade's clothes tailor-made, but the girl needed an entire wardrobe. She's get her fancy dresses tailor made, but having an entire wardrobe made that way would take too long and too much money anyway. Besides, Jade had insisted that she just wanted normal clothes. 

Fox had called ahead and made sure that they'd have a truck deliver all the clothes they bought back home. After they were done with Macy's, they headed over toward Border's. 

"You need to get a lot of books around your age group," Fox told the young girl. "So we can keep up the appearance that you're a normal ten-year-old. I'll let you get a few books that are more your level and they'll assume that those books are for me."

Jade agreed, but got a few books no normal person read until their first year of college. The driver put all the books in the trunk of the limo. 

The next stop was the shop was where the tailor made dresses bought. The two were there for over an hour. Jade ended up with an emerald dress that brought out her eyes, a violet dress, a black dress, and a flowery dress. These were placed in the limo as well.

The last stop was FAO Shwart's.

"What does the FAO stand for?" Jade asked as they went inside.

"You know, I'm not entirely sure," Fox grinned.

Jade was mostly interested in the three dimensional puzzles. She got a few dolls and stuffed animals, a lot of sports equipment, several PG movies, a Sega Genesis, with a bunch of games, and a Fox figurine.

"I'm never taking it out of its box," Jade grinned as the items were purchased.

After that, they went home. Owen took his daughter out in the city for the rest of the day. By the time the Gargoyles woke up, David had finished Jade's fake ID.

Apparently, she was now Jade Robyn Goodman, daughter of Owen Burnett and Alicia Evelyn Goodman. According to the story, Owen and Alicia Porter had had an affair eleven years ago, leaving them with a daughter. Jade had lived in Delaware with her mother for the first ten years of her life. Owen had come to visit once a year and had paid child support. After Alicia's death in a fire, Jade had been sent to live with her father.

Owen and David still needed to make Alicia real via old documents. Owen brought in Alex. After turning into Puck, he showed his prized pupil how to magically set up false documents. Takes to magic, it took no more than twenty minutes.

Jade, meanwhile, had started playing her Sega with Lex. It took a few minutes for her to figure out how the system worked. Once she did, Lex and Jade continually tied, much to the amusement of the other Gargoyles. Jade ended up winning by one point.

"First she outdoes Broadway in appetites," Brooklyn laughed. "Then she outdoes you in video games. What's next."

"Maybe I can outdo you in sarcasm," Jade grinning, looking up at the red gargoyle. "Then I can beat Goliath in . . ."

"I think you already bested him in tempers, lass," Hudson chuckled.

"Three down, three to go," Jade replied. "Okay, after I outdo Brooklyn in sarcasm-"

"Like that's going to happen," Brooklyn smirked.

"Weirder things have occurred," Jade smiled mysteriously.

"I still can't believe that you beat me," Lex groaned. 

"Well, I am a genius," Jade said, suddenly serious. "I learn quickly. Besides, it was mostly just luck."

Lex smiled and ruffled her hair. Jade grinned back.

Out in the very edge of Manhattan, Charlie Harrison sat in a bar, drinking his Budweiser dejectedly. He had lost the Girl and he didn't dare go back until he had captured it again. Charlie was one of those people who looked ten years younger than his actual age. He was small for his thirty-six years and looked like a kid fresh out of grad school. Charlie had always prided himself on his good looks. His face was slightly round, which made him look very angelic. He had tan skin and huge chocolate eyes. 

Those who knew him even slightly knew that Charlie Harrison was no angel. He had a quick temper. He was ruthless, dominating, and wouldn't hesitate to break a bone if it meant keeping people in line. God only knew how many of the Girl's bones he had broken. He stopped counting after fifty and that was a week after the sixth anniversary of its birth. Fortunately for the Girl, its bones healed quickly.

Most of Charlie's colleges were deathly afraid of him, but the Girl wasn't. It always stood up to him. Stupid girl. It wouldn't have gotten hurt so much if the brat did as it was told.

Charlie glared up at the television, which was starting to annoy him.

"In other news, David Xanatos, multi-billionaire, has taken in a new ward," the reporter was saying.

The TV program suddenly faded out to a shot of the Girl, talking animatedly to the reporters. Charlie froze.

"Ten-year-old Jade Goodman is the daughter of Xanatos' personal assistant, Owen Burnett," the TV reporter continued.

The TV faded out again, this time to a stiff-looking towheaded man who Charlie recognized as Owen Burnett.

"Jades' mother, Alicia and I had an affair over eleven years ago," Burnett explained. "We were both young. Jade may not have been planned," Burnett looked down at the Girl, who was leaning against him happily. "But she was not a mistake. I love her with all my heart. Alicia got custody of our daughter, but I continued to pay child support."

"After Mommy died in the fire," the Girl said, looking like she wanted to burst into tears. "I lost everything. The house, my stuff, and most importantly, my mother. I was sent to live with Daddy. Aunt Fox and Uncle David got me new stuff to replace the ones I lost. They've been so nice to me."

"Jade has been calling my employers that since she met them," Burnett explained. "It's a term of endearment for her."

So the unwitting donor had found out the truth. It would make things harder, but they had taken precautions should he ever find out. Charlie whipped out his cell phone and called his boss.

"Hello, Dr. Sevarius," Charlie said into the phone. "This is Charlie Harrison. Yes, sir, I realize how late it is, but this is urgent. The 'unwitting' donor discovered the truth. It's time to take those precautions we talked about. Yes, Doctor Sevarius. I'll be right over."

Charlie hung up the phone and grinned evilly.

Anton Sevarius sat at his desk, extremely confused. Harrison had just called him about something important, but he couldn't remember what it was about.

_It had better be important._ Sevarius thought, annoyed.

His employee had called just as he was about to go to bed. He remembered feeling a sense of dread, so he was curious what Harrison had to say.

The aforementioned man walked in at that moment. He had a determined and fierce look on his face. As usual, his eyes were cold and calculating.

"Hello, doctor," Harrison was holding a necklace of some kind. "Put this on."

"Why-" Sevarius started, confused.

"I'll explain after you put it on," Harrison interrupted.

"This had better been important," Sevarius grumbled as he put the necklace on.

It all came back to him in a flash.

"The Gargoyles were in my home," Sevarius gasped. "They know about the Girl and the unwitting donor."

"Xanatos has a new ward," Harrison added grimly. "A ten-year-old towheaded girl named Jade Robyn Goodman. Known to most as Jade."

"Getting It back will be a challenge," Sevarius mused. "But it'll be so much fun."

A/N All related characters belong to Toon Disney. Jade Goodman and Charlie Harrison belong to me.

A/N Someone had a question on which was Jade's father: Owen or Puck. Well, the answer is both of them. Technically, Owen Burnett is a mask. My theory is that Puck is still Puck inside, even if his alter ego in control. Thus, they are both Jade's father.

A/N By the way, my spell-check doesn't have "Xanatos in it. SO whenever the name came up, the closest it could find was "manatees". Hee hee!


	6. Crime and Punishment

Chapter Six Crime and Punishment

"I can't believe you got in trouble on your first day," Owen groaned as he and Jade walked into the mansion.

"It wasn't my fault," Jade protested.

David had enrolled her at Sterling Elementary School, the local private school. Jade hadn't even been there half a day before getting into a fight. A group of bullies had been picking on a smaller boy with glasses. Jade had felt a huge surge of anger and protectiveness, even though she had never met the boy. So Jade had come up and told the jerks to leave him alone. When they had laughed at her and mocked her, Jade saw red. Unfortunately, they hadn't reached that maturity level where hitting girls was not cool, so they started the try to beat her up. Jade had blocked every punch and kick. 

Jade was suddenly overcome with the memories of the many times Charlie and the other people at the lab had tormented her. So she started hitting back. The bullies ended up looking like they'd been through a car wreck. Jade only had a few scratches and bruises. Jade was sent to the headmistress' office, where she had tried to tell her view on what happened. The boy who Jade had been trying to defend, Mikey Fletcher, had supported her side of the story but the headmistress had sent him to class. Jade now had detention for a week and was suspended for the rest of the day. Owen was called and had to come pick her up.

"I was only trying to help," Jade protested.

"By beating them up?" Owen raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't mean it," Jade looked guilty. "They were taunting me and it reminded me of life back at the lab. I. . . I guess I lost myself. I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry."

"I know you had a terrible life," Owen sighed. "Nothing can justify what they did to you. However, you can't take out your anger on living beings. I'm very disappointed in you."

Jade looked like she wanted to cry. "I'll go pack now."

The father stared back at his offspring, confused. "Pack?"

"I let you down," Jade looked like she couldn't stand to hear herself talk. "I failed you, Daddy."

It took a few minutes for Owen to realize what the girl was talking about. Suddenly, it hit him like a ton of bricks. He picked her up.

"Jade," he told her gently. "You're a child. You're supposed to make mistakes every now and then. The important thing is that you learn from your mistakes. You don't have to be perfect to have my love. You could go out and kill dozens of people and I'll still love you. Don't actually go out and do that, mind you. Understand?"

"You'd love me no matter what?" Jade looked shocked and thrilled at the idea. 

"No matter what," Owen promised.

Jade hugged her parent with all her might. "I love you, Daddy."

The two remained there, hugging each other, as if frozen in time. Finally, Owen put his daughter back down.

"I'm still going to have to punish you," Owen informed her. "I talked to Mr. Xanatos and e pushed off my week off until next week. Until then, Jade, you're grounded. You will still go to school, but you can't go anywhere else without my permission. You'll help around the house with chores while under punishment. Go to your room until I tell you otherwise."

"Yes, Daddy," Jade nodded and left for her room.

Owen watched her leave, wondering how the Xanatos parents and Goliath made parenting look so easily. Perhaps he should talk to Mr. Xanatos about parenting. No, Alexander was only four months old. He couldn't even crawl yet, let alone get into fights. Gargoyles protected, but they seemed to know when to stop. Or most of them anyway. Angela was Goliath's long-lost daughter. In gargoyle years, she was an adolescent when she started living with her father. Goliath would be the best to ask advice about raising a child.

"Lord, give me strength," he muttered, thinking about the lousy track record he had with the clan.

As always, the Manhattan clan woke with an almighty roar. Goliath was surprised that Jade was not up there to greet them. Instead, Elisa and Owen Burnett were there. Elisa he had expected, but Owen rarely ever came unless he had vitally important to tell them.

"Owen," Lex was looking at the fey-in-disguise strangely. "Hello. Where's Jade."

"I am sorry to report that my daughter is under punishment," Owen replied.

"Punishment?" Hudson questioned. 

"She got into a fight at school," Elisa explained. "Beat three kids to a pulp."

"That doesn't sound like Jade," Goliath frowned.

"The kids are a year older than her and twice her height," Owen elaborated. "According to Jade, they were picking on a smaller boy. Jade said that she felt an overwhelming sense of protectiveness and defended the boy. When the bullies started taunting and hitting her, she snapped. She had flashbacks of the last ten years of her life and took out her anger on the bullies."

"Poor girl," Angela said sadly. "She has so much pain in her."

"Still, she does have to learn to control her temper," Owen argued. "I . . . grounded her for a week. She's not to leave the grounds for any reason except for school and she's to help out around the house."

Owen looked mildly nervous. For him that meant that he was really nervous.

"Was I to hard on her?" Owen asked carefully.

"The lass needs plenty of love right now," Hudson mused. "However, she needs to know right from wrong. While her intentions were good, she has to know that she can't under any circumstances, take out her anger on a living being."

"She thought I didn't love her anymore," Owen thought out loud. "She explained what happened, but didn't try to make excuses. She was honest about what she did. I know her well enough to know that she felt guilty about it, but what really bothered her was that I was disappointed in her. She told me she'd go pack."

"Pack?" Brooklyn asked, confused.

"That's exactly what I said," Owen continued. "She said that she had failed me and wasn't worth the time. She was extremely surprised to learn that he'd love her no matter what."

"At the lab, she probably was punished severely if she made even the smallest mistake," Elisa surmised. "If a child is raised in an environment like that, then they don't have a very high opinion of themselves, especially when they mess up. The idea that she doesn't lose someone's love when they mess up is a totally new concept to her."

They all stood in silence for a few minutes, each thinking how it must feel to live under such circumstances.

"Is the prisoner allowed to have visitors?" Lex asked Owen.

Owen gave the small gargoyle one of his rare smiles. "She'd like that a lot, Lexington."

With that, Lex ran down to hang out with the young human.

Jade sat in her room, marveling at the patience her father had with her. She also felt guilty for what happened. Then the phone in her room rang, interrupting her thoughts.

"Hello?" she said into the phone.

"Hi, Jade Goodman, this is Mikey Fletcher," the voice said. "I wanted to thank you for helping me today."

"Hello, Mikey," Jade smiled. "How are you? You're welcome, by the way."

"I'm fine," Mikey replied. "My mom was mad when she found out that you beat up those creeps. Then I explained that you only wanted to help and I told her that your mom had died recently. Sorry about your mom, by the way."

"I'll be okay," Jade assured the young human.

"Grandma, my mom's mom, died when Mom was a teenager," Mikey continued. "She knows what that kind of pain is like. She says it's okay if we become friends. Will you be my friend, Jade?"

"I'd like that," Jade smiled.

"Cool," Mikey sounded very happy. "I don't have to many friends. So . . .how much were you punished?"

"According to Dad, I'm grounded for a week," Jade reported. "And I have to help around the house."

"Ew, harsh," Mikey commented.

"I'll live," Jade shrugged.

"Are you allowed to be on the phone?" Mikey asked.

"Dad didn't say otherwise."

"Cool, I have to go have dinner soon, but I wanted to give you the homework you missed."

"Hold on. Let me get a pen and paper."

As soon as Jade had the aforementioned items, Mikey read off the homework that she had missed. Then they said their good-byes and hung up. Jade was working on her homework when Lex came in.

"Hey, Lex," Jade grinned. "How did you sleep?"

"All right, I guess," Lex sat on Jade's bed. "So, you got in a fight, huh?"

Jade raised an eyebrow at him. "Have you come to lecture me, too?"

"Of course not," Lex assured her. "There's no need for that. I just came to hang out with you. I thought you'd like some company."

Jade grinned at him. "Cool. I heard someone say that today."

Lex grinned back, remembering his first night exploring Manhattan. "So, how do you like Manhattan?"

"It's pretty," Jade replied. "I've seen pictures of the Empire State Building and the Twin towers. At the lab, they had me make replicas, each of them about the size of Goliath."

Lex hesitated, not knowing quite what to say.

"Lex?" Jade asked. "What's it like being part of a family?"

"You're loved and protected," he wasn't sure how to explain it. "In turn, you instinctively feel that you should protect the family as well. And of course, you love them back. Is there something wrong with you and Owen?"

"No," Jade smiled happily. "I just wanted to make sure I was feeling the right things."

"And were you?"

Jade nodded. Then she frowned. "One more thing. You know that spell Dad put on me to change my image."

"Yeah."

"You know that red dress he put on me the first time? What did Uncle David mean by Dad 'going for the theater and forgetting the dog?"

Lex laughed. "There's a play about a red-headed girl in a red dress. The play is kind of like your life in a way. "Anyway, the main character, Annie runs away. Along the way she befriends a dog."

"What happened to her?" Jade asked, interested.

"I've never seen it," Lex replied. "You should ask your dad or one of the humans about it. So, want a rematch in Sega?"

Jade grinned. "You're on."

Three days went by and Jade didn't complain once about her punishment. When she got home at three thirty each day, she'd go into her father's office and do her homework while he was working. Apparently, a week of detention meant that she had to go to the office during recess and do extra work. 

Mikey and Jade sat together at lunch every day. Mikey was right. He didn't have to many friends. In fact he didn't have any. Apparently, he had moved to Manhattan from Chicago two years ago and never really had success making new friends on account of him being so small and clumsy. Kids still picked on him at recess, but no one was ever brave enough to get on Jade's bad side. The two had become fast friends. Mikey had invited Jade to spend the night in a week.

"We can play Sega Genesis," Mikey's grey eyes sparkled whenever he mentioned his game systems. "I just got this new game. How good are you?"

"Pretty good," Jade replied modestly.

"I'm gonna beat your butt," Mikey said, grinning.

Jade gave her Mona Lisa smile. "We'll see."

Mikey grabbed something out of his lunch bag. It was two walkie-talkies.

"My dad sells these things," Mikey explained. "He gave me a set for my birthday last year, hoping I'd try harder to make friends. I have about eight of them that are all on the same channel. Now that I actually have one, I'd like you to have a walkie-talkie."

"Thank you," Jade was truly touched. 

"So are you walking home today or taking the bus?"

"We're allowed to walk home?" 

"Yeah, I do it a lot. Mom doesn't get home from work about an hour after I get home."

"I'll call my dad and see if it's alright."

As it turned out, it was all right with Owen, as long as she came right home. Since Jade was new, Mikey offered to walk her home.

"Muggers usually don't come out until night," Mikey grinned, his pale blonde hair blowing in the wind.

Jade had a sudden mental image of Charlie as a mugger, aiming a gun at someone, and telling him or her, "Gimme all you's got." The thought of the high and mighty Charlie sinking as low as a common mugger was oddly amusing. Jade giggled suddenly.

"What's so funny?" Mikey wondered.

"Nothing," Jade replied. "Well, something, but it's a very long story."

"I never really, um, thanked you for helping me," Mikey said shyly.

"I don't like seeing people picked on," Jade shrugged. "I'm very neurotic that way."

"What does neurotic mean?" Mikey asked, confused.

"It means I have an obsession about helping people," Jade smiled.

The two children began to talk animatedly about their favorite Sega games. They were so into the conversation that they didn't notice the white truck coming toward them. They only really noticed it when a pair of arms snatched Jade and threw her into the truck, which was still moving.

Jade was thrown roughly onto the floor. She groaned and tried do get up but a guy dressed from head to toe in black was sitting on her.

"I didn't need a lift," Jade muttered.

The guy sitting on her took his mask off. Jade gasped. It was Charlie.

"You didn't really think you'd outrun us forever," he asked her condescendingly.

"A girl can hope, can't she?" Jade glared. "How did you find me anyway? Dad made sure I'd be protected by you creeps."

"Wouldn't you like to know," Charlie sneered. "As for your father, I guess this means he's overrated. Big Daddy isn't as powerful as you thought."

Jade gave him a dirty look. Charlie grabbed her by her shirt and yanked her up to a sitting position. A thug behind her whipped off her bookbag. The van stopped when the light turned red. The thug opened the door and threw out her bookbag. Then the van started moving again.

"You won't be needing that anymore," Charlie smirked as a second thug handed him a white handkerchief.

Charlie suddenly shoved the handkerchief in Jade's face. The force threw her backwards. She noticed that there was a funny smell on the handkerchief.

_Chloroform_. She realized, beginning to panic.

She struggled futilely against the Sweeper.

_I want my daddy._ Her mind screamed frantically. _Daddy. Daddy, help me, please. I need you._

With those last thoughts, Jade slowly sank into unconsciousness.

A/N I own Jade Goodman, Charlie Harrison, Mikey Fletcher, Sterling Elementary School and the thugs. Everyone else belongs to Toon Disney. 

A/N To answer another question someone sent me, the protection spell Puck placed on his daughter would protect her from anyone with bad intentions. Hypothetically speaking, Puck could go up to Sevarius and boast that he found Jade and Sevarius will never touch her again. Unfortunately, Puck wasn't aware of the necklace.

A/N Another chapter up. :Does Victory dance: I rule!


	7. The True Meaning of Family

Chapter Seven

Owen had been working in his office when his daughter had called. He was so pleased that she had already begun to make friends her own age.

_It's not so surprising. _Owen could practically see his alter ego grinning maniacally. _It's all in the genes, after all._

_You always did overestimate yourself._ Owen mentally rolled his eyes.

Despite the Puck's insistence that he never overestimated himself, Owen continued on his paperwork. Or at least he tried until he heard Jade's voice in the back of his head.

_Chloroform._ Her voice sounded terrified. _No, no, no. I want my daddy. Daddy. Daddy, help me, please. I need you._

Then her voice was gone.

Oberon had only let him use his powers when he was teaching or protecting young Alexander. Puck had kept the mind-link between fey up in case any fey had planned on endangering his student. A fey, even a half-fey or even one-hundredth-fey was in the link, but it took training to be able to submit messages. It puzzled him how Jade was able to send a message.

But that wasn't his top priority. His daughter was in danger. Owen rushed out of his office to find his boss. Fortunately, David Xanatos' office was just a few doors over. The problem was, there was already someone in his office.

The "someone" was a small boy with pale blonde hair. He looked about Jade's age.

"Sir," Owen said, gasping for breath. "Jade's in danger. I -"

David put up a hand to silence him. "I know. Owen, this is Michael Fletcher, a friend of Jade's. He witnessed her kidnapping."

" A van came and just grabbed her out of nowhere," Michael was in tears. "We didn't even see it coming."

"I have already contacted the police," David continued. "They want to speak to young Michael here. I have arranged a ride for him to the precinct."

Right on cue, a Xanatos Enterprises employee came in and led the boy away, closing the door behind them. David stood up and walked over to his personal assistant.

"How did you know that Jade was in trouble?" David asked curiously.

Owen explained what he had heard.

"The police aren't going to be able to find her," Owen added after he finished explaining. "Ms. Maza, maybe, but Sevarius is very good at hiding. I can't use my powers to find her, since young Alexander is in no way involved."

David put a comforting arm around his friend. "The Gargoyles will. You and I may not be on their top ten list, but they're very fond of your daughter. Sevarius will pay, I will make sure of that."

"You and me both, sir," Owen growled.

When Jade came to, it took her a few minutes to realize that she wasn't lying down. In fact, she was seated in a chair with her arms chained behind a pole with cold iron. Back at the lab, she always thought that she was allergic to iron, even though the books she read said it was impossible. She always got sleepy and in pain when ever she touched it. Once when she was four, they fed her a green vegetable called asparagus, which has plenty of iron in it. She had a reaction to it that almost killed her.

Ignoring the waves of nausea, Jade opened her eyes to study her surroundings. She was in what looked like a giant warehouse. She vaguely noticed a camera recording her every move. Whoever she was, it was cold.

Charlie came in through the garage door in front of her. Jade glared at him as he walked up to her. He gave her a slight sneer as he walked behind her and unlocked her manacles.

"Stand up," he growled, yanking her up by the back of her shirt.

Jade was about to retort back, when HE walked in to face her.

"Dr. Sevarius," she gasped, immediately assuming first position.

First position meant standing up straight with her arms hanging by her sides. Her head was tipped downward.

"You gave us quite a run," Dr. Sevarius remarked, staring at her coldly.

Never speak unless spoken to. Never speak unless spoken to. Dr. Sevarius rarely ever spoke _to_ her.

"I think you need to be taught a lesson," Dr. Sevarius continued.

With that, he punched her in the eye. Jade stumbled and fell over sideways, but made sure not to make eye contact with the adults.

"Get up," Dr. Sevarius growled.

Jade obeyed, keeping her head lowered.

"What is your name?" Dr. Sevarius asked her.

"It," Jade replied sheepishly.

"And what is Its purpose?"

Jade knew the answers to these questions by heart. "To do as Its told."

"What do you ask when I tell you to jump?"

"I ask 'how high?'"

"So, if It knows the rules, why does It break them?" Sevarius asked. "Does It enjoy being punished?"

Jade didn't say anything. Dr. Sevarius smacked her across the face.

"Well?" he asked angrily.

"I-I don't know," Jade tried hard not to react to the pain. 

"It knows the rules," Dr. Sevarius growled. "It must face the consequences. First for getting a big head and second for interacting with outsiders."

Jade grew a few shades paler.

"Mr. Harrison," Dr. Sevarius looked up at Charlie. "If you would do the honors."

"Love to," Charlie grabbed, starting to yank Jade out to a side room by her hair. 

Goliath had been having a pleasant dream about Elisa while he slept. It was one of those dreams where he knew he was asleep, but couldn't care less. It was the first time he and Elisa were flying. Puck had turned her into a gargoyle and she was gliding for the first time. He remarked about how he had never noticed how beautiful she was until now. 

"You mean you thought I was ugly?" Elisa had asked wryly.

Some part in the back of his head knew that she was joking, but his brain didn't fully register it. What did register was the fact that the way he saw his human friend was changing. It was the first time he realized that he was slowly falling in love with her. He felt like a hatchling again, ignorant of the ways of the world. It didn't even occur to him what the repercussions of loving a woman outside his species would be. It didn't matter. For the first time in a long time, Goliath was happy. He was in total and utter bliss.

The moment kept replaying in his mind until the sun set. Needless to say, when he awoke, Goliath was one very happy gargoyle. He was, at least until he noticed the grim looks on the humans' faces. Elisa, Xanatos, Fox and Owen were all standing there.

"What's wrong?" Goliath asked. "Where's Jade?"

"Jade's been kidnapped," Elisa said quietly. "She was walking home from school and a white truck snatched her."

There was a collective gasp from the entire clan.

"Why?" Lex was speechless. "'How?"

"We think it was Sevarius," Xanatos said darkly.

"I don't understand," Angela frowned. "Puck put that protection spell on her that anyone with bad intentions would forget what they discovered about her."

"When Sevarius began the project that created Jade, he already knew what I was," Owen cursed. "He must have taken precautions if we ever found out. It never even occurred to me. How could I be so blind?"

"Easy, lad," Hudson said gently. "Being immortal does not make one all-powerful and all-knowing. It's not your fault."

"I know," Owen sighed. "But it doesn't make me feel any better. Especially since I'm forbidden to use my powers to find my own daughter."

"I know that you and I are not the best of friends, but my clan and I will do everything we can to find Jade," Goliath assured the agitated father. "I don't know if she told you, but two nights ago we made Jade a member of the clan."

"She told me," Owen smiled reflectively.

Goliath remembered Jade's excited and pleased face at the prospect of being accepted. It was such a foreign concept to her that she almost saw it as unattainable.

"Jade's one of us," Brooklyn reaffirmed. "We'll find our little sister."

Xanatos winked at Owen. "Toldja."

Jade wasn't sure how much longer she could hold out before losing consciousness. Charlie had severely beaten her, breaking her right collarbone in the process. Then Dr. Sevarius had taken over, breaking a bone in her leg and stabbing her in the chest with an iron knife. Sevarius, making sure to be as painful as possible, popped her bones back into place. He also cleaned up the wound. Jade had seen more compassion from scientists taking care of the animals that they performed experiments on them than Dr. Sevarius showed on her.

"When It misbehaves, the Girl will be punished," Dr. Sevaius had told Charlie, wrapping a gauze around her chest. "But under no circumstances should It be killed."

Jade focused what was left on her energy to keep from crying. She knew that if she cried, they'd hurt her even more. Dr. Sevarius had chained her where she was when she first woke up. The iron made Jade even more sleepy and in more pain. She was terrified that if she fell asleep, she would never wake up. Despite her attempts not to, Jade slipped into the darkness.


	8. Decisions

Chapter 8 Decisions

The Gargoyles ended up trying to find Jade the old-fashioned way. They had Bronx sniff a piece of Jade's clothing and had him follow her scent. Puck decided to teach Alex how to transfigure living beings and turned Bronx into an ordinary dog. Elisa went below with Bronx and the Gargoyles followed them by air.

The first place were Bronx led them was where Jade's bookbag had been thrown. Elisa went through it checking for clues.

"Find anything?" Goliath asked hopefully as the Gargoyles landed beside Elisa.

"No luck," said Elisa sadly. Then she studied the bookbag more carefully. "This bookbag was tossed onto the ground hard. Most likely, from a moving vehicle."

"Why would they just toss it out?" Angela asked, confused.

"To taunt her, I suppose?" Elisa shrugged.

Elisa put the bag on. The group continued on their way.

Jade was in a very strange place. To her left, there was green grass and giant trees with different fruit growing on each one. The sun was shining. Birds were singing. The land on the other side was an exact duplicate of the first, except for the fact that it was barren. Like there had been a giant forest fire that burned it all. Jade herself was standing in the middle of a red circle with a yellow spiral.

She felt drawn to the prettier side. It looked so peaceful. Jade followed the spiral out of the circle and made her way into the green land. She explored the land for a while. It was a strange sensation. She felt like she was being carried, even though she was traveling on her own two feet. Soothing voices called out to her, assuring her that everything would be all right.

Jade looked back at the Barren Place, as she had decided to call it. It seemed even darker and farther away. Out of seemingly nowhere, a woman appeared. Jade stared at her in wonder. Although she wore a simple white dress, the woman looked majestic. She had blue skin and black hair. The stars themselves seemed to be in the woman's hair. Although they had never met, Jade knew instantly who this woman was. Jade looked down at herself. She was wearing the same dress, except hers was tailor-made to look like something a child would where. The woman's dress showed off her beauty.

"Hello, Jade," the woman smiled pleasantly.

"Amethyst" Jade asked, smiling back up.

There was something warm and comforting about the woman.

"Come, child. I've come to take you home," Amethyst outstretched an arm invitingly.

"Home," Jade murmured longingly.

She reached out to take the woman's hand. Before she could even grasp her hand, Jade heard voices. Not the soothing ones, but voices of the past.

_"You can trust us,"_ came Angela's voice.

_"We want to help you."_ Hudson.

_"Are you alright?" _Elisa.

"_It's going to be alright,"_ Uncle David. _"We won't let him hurt you, as long as you need it you're under our protection."_

_"You could go and kill dozens of people and I'll still love you."_ Daddy.

_"Will you be my friend?"_ Mikey.

Jade withdrew her hand as if burnt. Amythest looked back, concerned.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"You're taking me to Heaven, aren't you," Jade asked softly.

"Yes."

"I don't want to go," Jade said slowly backing up. "I can't."

"Why not Jade?" She looked confused. "You've suffered long enough. Don't you want to rest?"

"I have had a painful life," Jade admitted. "But for the first time in my life, I was happy. I had people who loved me for who I was. Whenever I'm with them, I feel like I'm home. I need them and they need me. I can't go with you. Please don't make me go."

The angel smiled proudly and bent down to hug the young girl. As soon as she was embraced, she felt even warmer. After a minute, the angel stood back up, still smiling at the young girl.

"It's your choice whether or not you want to go," Amethest explained. "If you feel that you have the will and the strength to stay on the Earth plane, you may continue to live. The road will be long and hard. Are you up for the challenge, little one?"

"I am," Jade said, trying to gather all her nerve together.

"Then go, Jade Goodman," the angel pointed toward the Barren Place. "Go make a wasteland into a utopia. Go with Our support."

"Our?" Jade asked, confused. "Is there someone else here too?"

"It's time to make your journey, little one of great destiny," the angel smiled lovingly.

Then she vanished. Jade smiled softly and turned to walk in the Barren Place. The Barren Place was so cold. Her dress, which was once so warm, now did nothing to shield her from the cold.

Jade sighed and looked around, shivering. Then she gasped. There was a well-worn teddy bear leaning against a nearby tree. Jade ran up to inspect the familiar bear. It had bloodstains on it ans smelled of salt from thousands of tears shed. She knew this bear. Her protector had given it to her. It had been his, but he wanted her to have it. It was the only toy she had ever had at the lab. She had to leave it behind when she escaped.

"Jare-Bear," the child picked up the toy and hugged it.

As she embraced it, Jare-Bear turned into a white light that covered the girl from head to toe. When the light dispensed, the bear was gone. She was hugging herself. She also noticed that she was no longer cold. She slowly opened her eyes. The part of the Barren Place of which she had walked upon had turned into the fruitful land she had left. She turned around where it was still barren. Not knowing what to expect, Jade traveled on. As she passed the barren land, it slowly turned into the fruitful land. Jade giggled and ran on.

When Jade awoke, the first thing she noticed was the amount of pain her body was in. Then second thing she noticed was that someone had picked her up and was carrying her over her shoulder.

"What?" she groaned. "Where-"

The person carrying her dropped her roughly on the ground. Jade moaned in pain and looked up.

"Hi, Charlie," she said numbly.

Charlie and Dr. Sevarius were both looking down at her coldly.

"I was wondering what happened," Dr. Sevarius said mildly. "You passed out and you were talking to yourself. Now, get up."

Before she could obey, Charlie yanked her roughly back on her feet with the iron manacles she wore.

With that, they shoved her into the trunk of a car. Jade could tell they were moving through the vibrations. She tried to make herself as comfortable as possible. Her thoughts drifted back to the conversation she had with her father.

FLASH!

Puck looked at the half-fey sharply. "Are you reading my thoughts?"

"Of course not," Jade said indignantly. "I told you. I hate manipulation of any kind. A person's thought should be private. I . . . I could read thoughts for a while, but I blocked it out. I can still feel emotions. Like radar."

FLASH!

She was back in the trunk. Normally, she'd hate to read other people's thoughts, but her life depended on this. She needed to know how Charlie and Dr. Sevarius were able to bypass her father's spell.

Jade closed her eyes and concentrated solely on Charlie's mind. TO her great surprise, narrowing it down to one mind was easy. She had every aspect of Charlie's mind at her fingertips. She knew what she wanted, and searched in that area.

An image of a necklace appeared in her mind. It was completely made of iron with strange symbols on it. What was so special about that necklace? Suddenly, she saw one of Charlie's memories and understood why.

_Both men were face to face talking to each other. Charlie was holding a baby and Dr. Sevarius was holding something in the palm of his hand. They both looked about ten years younger._

_"It's the first anniversary of Project Prometheus," Charlie said. "Which would make the girl exactly a month old. Sir, what if our unwitting donor finds out?"_

_"I took precautions," Dr. Sevarius smirked. "See this necklace. It's made of iron, which the fey are vulnerable to. You'll also notice the runes. This one means hiding. The one next to it means protection. The others spell out Puck's name. In a nutshell, these amulets will protect us from Puck's spells."_

Jade opened her eyes. So it was the necklace, huh? She made a decision right there and now to stop being afraid. If she was going to go back to Dad, she'd have to face up to her fear. For Dad. For her Protector. For her mother, wherever she was.

A/N I don't have to go through the disclaimer again to I? All I own are Jade, Mikey, Charlie, Amethest and Jare-Bear.

A/N By the way, Jare-Bear is pronounced Jayr-Bear. The "Jar" part is short for Jarod.


	9. Healing

Chapter Nine

Jade tried not to be, but part of her was terrified. THey were taking her back to the lab. She couldn't go back. Not now, when she finally had a family. It wasn't the nuclear family she had always dreamed about. No, her family consisted of a father, and uncle and aunt and cousin, a surragate mother who didn't live in the same house as her, and a whole clan of people who weren't even human. They had all accepted her into their lives and she didn't have to prove herself to them. THey were her family.

_Love knows no species_. Jade thought idly, smiling.

Suddenly, the car jerked to a stop, yanking the girl painfully out of her thoughts.

There was a powerful and angry roar. Yelling. More yelling, ANother roar.

"Looks like Goliath found me," Jade mumbled.

Suddenly, the trunk was open. Sevarius yanked her out, pointing a gun at her head.

"Stay away from me," Sevarius screamed. "I'll kill her."

Meanwhile, Jade had noticed, Broadway had knocked Charlie uncontious. Elisa was hand-cuffing him.

Jade needed them to distract Sevarius. He had to have his protection taken away.

Goliath growled as he and his clan were forced into a corner. He had given the order not to make any suddenly moves, so Jade wouldn't be more endangered than she already was.

She looked like she had been beaten. SHe was covered with bruises, and blood was soaking on the front of her shirt. Surprisingly, Jade didn't look terrified at all. SHe was staring at him intently. Confused, Goliath stared back. Slowly, an image of a necklace came into his mind'e eye. It had runes all over and looked like it was made of iron.

_Destroy the necklaces. _He could hear Jade's voice in his head.

Jade tilted her head slightly, staring at Goliath in askance. Goliath noddded slightly to show he understood. Jade smiled softly. Jade grabbed Sevarius' hand and bit savagely into it. Sevarius yelped in surprise and pain and tried to free his hand from the girl's vise-like grip and holding on to her at the same time. When that didn't work he pushed the child back and kicked her inn the stomache. Jade screamed in pain and fell into Brooklyn. 

"Get Jade to a hospital," Goliath ordered his second-in-command.

Brooklyn nodded, scooped the human up in his arms and flew out.

Golliath growled at Sevarius. If it was a war the doctor wanted, it was a war he'd get.

The two were silent as Brooklyn glided over to the hospital.

"Hi, Brooklyn," Jade said with a weak smile.

"Hey, Jade," Brooklyn smiled down at the girl. "How do you feel?"

"Like a dentist giving Goliath a root canal without novacaine," Jade let out a weak chuckle. 

Brooklyn laughed, although he wasn't quite sure what dentists and novacaine were.

"Brooklyn?"

"Yeah?"

"I really love you guys, you know," Jade sounded dazed. "Uncle David, Aunt Fox, Alex, Elisa and the rest of the clan. You're my family. My first family ever. Whatever happens, I love you all no matter what."

"Maybe you shouldn't talk," Brooklyn advised. "You're getting weaker."

"I need to get this out," Jade insisted. "Tell them, 'kay."

Brooklyn glanced at the girl with a worried expression on his face. "You'll be able to tell them yourself."

"Hmm," the child's eyes fluttered closed.

"Jade," the gargoyle shook her gently. "You have to stay awake."

"So tired," Jade's voice was a whisper "Need to sleep."

"DOn't die on me, Jade," Brooklyn ordered.

"Won't die," her soft voice was getting softer. "Goota go now. I'll never leave you guys."

"Jade, wake up," Brooklyn shooker er gently at first; then harder when she wouldn't comply.

He hurredly checked her pulse. It was there. Weak, but there. Brooklyn glided even faster to the hospital.

As soon as he was sure the child was out of danger, Goliath leapt on Sevarius. The doctor's gun went off, shooting Lex in the arm. THe little gargoyle bellowled in pain. Goliath yanked the gun and threw it behind him. Broadway caught it and smashed it to pieces.

"You alright, Lex," Broadway asked.

"Peachy," Lex replied, bandaging up his arm.

"You shouldn't play with guns," Goliath snarled. Then he turned to his daughter. "Break the necklace on the other human's neck. Smash it to pieces."

Angela began to comply as Goliath yanked the other necklace off Sevarius.

"Give that back," Sevarius protested. "Do you have any idea how much it cost to have those hand-crafted?"

In response, Goliath smashed it into a million little pieces. "I couldn't care less."

Sevarius looked at the broken necklace in shock and horror.

"I should kill you right here and now," Goliath growled. "You made a child's life a living hell."

"I own that Girl," Sevarius protested. "It wouldn't exist if it wasn't for me. It owes me for that."

"Jade is not an it," Angela bellowed.

"I'm not going to kill you," Goliath decided. "We will make sure you pay, but we won't kill you."

"Why not," Lex whined.

"I'm sure that a certain fey would like to get a few licks in," Goliath grinned evilly.

Sevarius stared in wide-eyed terror. That look soon turned to confusion.

"Goliath?" the doctor asked, perplexed. "Where am I? What's going on?"

Jade ended up in a coma for an entire week. Most of her wounds healed quickly, except for where she was stabbed. Half-fey or fey wounds orgined in iron took longer to heal. Owen was there when she first woke up. He had taken the entire week off and spent all of it with his daughter. Like most coma patients, Jade came out terrified. After a while, though, she calmed down.

"Hey, Daddy," she smiled weakly.

"Munchkin," Owen kissed her on the forehead. "How are you feeling?"

"Confused," Jade admitted. "How long have I been out?"

"About a week," Owen stroked her hair.

"A week," Jade groaned. "All that make-up work for school-"

"Don't worry about that yet," Owen laughed. "Lord, you're acting more like me every day."

"Is that Owen or Puck speaking?" Jade grinned.

"Both," the father replied.

"I'm the luckiest girl in the entire world," Jade smiled. "Not only do I have two fathers, I also have an aunt, an uncle, a cousin and an entire clan that I was adopted into My family."

Jade suddenly looked sad.

"What's wrong, my lilttle Jadeling?" Owen asked, concerned.

"I know one half of me," Jade replied. ""But my mother . . . I wish I knew her. I don't know what kind of things she likes. The sound of her voice. Dad, I don't even know what she looks like."

"You'll find her someday," Owen reassured her.

"You think so?"

"I know so," Owen handed her a box. "SOmeone sent this to you. A Mr. C. J. Smith."

Curious, the girl opened the box. She gasped in surprise as she took out a very familiar bear.

"Jar-Bear," Jade was unable top believe her luck. SHe hugged the worn-out teddy bear tightly.

"Jar-Bear?" Owen repeated. 

"My Protector gave him to be when I was three," Jade explained. "He said that he wouldn't always be able to visit when I was upset. So he gave me this bear. I have no idea where he got it from. Anyway, hee told me, to usde this when he wasn't there. He told that whever I hugged Jar-Bear, I'd really be recieving a hug from him."

"That's sweet," Owen smiled. "So who is C.J. Smith?"

"I have no idea," Jade laughed.

Owen hugged his daughter gently. Jade leaned on him. For the longest time, no words were spoken. Both father and daughter sat there for a while, basking in the unspken love. The unconditional love that was new to them both. But that didn't matter because they both instictively, knew what to do.

The End 


End file.
